On The Road Again

We are back in outback WA, after a week in chilly Melbourne. Dennis’s father Matt was given a terrific send off. He’d left strict instructions that his funeral was not to become “a pantomime” – and the ceremony was suitably simple, but with plenty of warmth, love and humour which would have done him proud. And such a crowd – we figure there were about 130 people there to farewell Matt. We can all only hope to be surrounded by that much love and respect when we’re 89!

Making new friends at the bus stop

We managed to make our way back to Halls Creek in record time – 16 hrs; 20 mins. Flew to Adelaide and then on to Darwin. Had lunch in Darwin with our friends, Ricky and Yvonne; then caught a small plane from Darwin to Kununurra, took a taxi to the bus stop and finally boarded the bus for the 4 hour trip to Halls Creek. We’d had to book a hotel room ($220 for the “Executive Suite” in Halls Creek – amazing what price you can command when you have your customer over a barrel) – so you can imagine our despair when we arrived in Hall Creek to find the reception completely shut and no late check in options provided. We discovered that you can achieve a lot if you just make enough noise!!

The next morning we were reunited with our car (turned out to be a broken wheel stud, not a wheel bearing after all – cheaper, but also horrifying to realize that there had been a good chance the wheel could have just come off while we were barreling down the highway), picked up the camper….and we were home at last. Seriously – it’s amazing how much “the road” now feels like home.

The Road Less Travelled

We then decided to hit the “road less travelled”. We headed down the Tanami Track and then turned off into the aboriginal communities of Balgo  Mulan to Lake Gregory and Stretch Lagoon. There were virtually no other tourists, and yet, to our surprise here was a permanent body of water right in the dunes where the Tanami and the Great Sandy deserts meet.

A bit of background before I continue. When I was 12 years old my family moved from Washington DC, where my father had been posted for the last 5 years, back to Ottawa Canada. For some reason in that first year back in Canada I developed an obsession with the Montreal Canadians ice hockey team. I used to write long letters to all my friends in Washington going on and on about the hockey and which players I had a crush on. Anyway, it didn’t take long before those friends stopped writing back. By the time I was 14 I didn’t really give a stuff about hockey anymore – but that brief obsession had lost me all my childhood friends.

Stretch Lagoon

So – it is because of the scars from this experience that I have decided not to say too much about the birds. I realize that none of you really want to hear about all the amazing new birds we saw at Stretch Lagoon, how beautiful they were, how they were nesting and starting to prepare for breeding season. You certainly wouldn’t want to know that a pair of Little Eagles had a huge nest in a tree growing right in the middle of the lagoon, that we finally saw a Sacred Kingfisher and that the White Breasted Woodswallow makes a nest that look like an adobe hut. Chances are that our new obsession with bird watching will be over within the next 6 months. So it doesn’t seem worth risking any friendships!

Sunset over Lake Gregory

The area we were travelling is now known as the Paruku Indigenous Protection Area. The land that used to comprise two pastoral leases was handed back to the aboriginal people by the WA government in 2001. The area includes the communities of Balgo, Mulan and Billiluna. All look like a tip, two out of three communities have declared bankruptcy and absolutely everything of note seems to be managed by white people. While we were there the first muster in 10 years was taking place – and almost ALL the cowboys were white. I’m not judging at all – just relaying the sad and frustrating facts.

Then it was back to Halls Creek – along the last 100k of the Canning Stock Route, so we didn’t miss it altogether. On the way, we stopped off at Wolfe Creek Meteorite Crater – the second largest in the world, and (Kevin, you guessed it) the largest in the southern hemisphere.

We returned to Halls Creek to vote, but to our horror we discovered that only WA residents could vote in Halls Creek. Interstate types had to go to Broome or Kununurra. Neither was on our planned route, but at least Kununurra was in the right general direction. So it was back in the car for a further 360k drive. The ridiculous thing is we know we are going to cancel out each other’s vote – but you have to do your democratic duty. Luckily we got up early this morning, because those poor people at the polling station had absolutely no idea how to handle interstate votes and the queue was well out the door by the time we left.

We are now at Keep River National Park, just the other side of the NT border. It’s hot, very hot. And I hate to say it but we are just sitting here sweating and….watching the birds. So I will hand over to that other great twitcher.

In the next blog we will celebrate 12 months since we hit the road so I will save the details until then.

Back in Melbourne again for the 2nd time in 2 weeks to farewell dad, it was a good family time and we celebrated his successful life from the time he spent in the Air Force (5 Years ) in the second world war to growing up in the depression through to being married to mum for 60 years, having 6 kids, 13 grand kids and one great granddaughter. We all remember him in our own ways and we are happy that his suffering has now ended. Mum is doing well and looking forward to the future which is really great for her and the rest of the family. Thanks to all the people who attended the funeral, we appreciate it.

Bazza's Lifestyle

On the road still clocking up the kilometers and meeting lots of interesting people, today I met Bazza, a guy form Perth who as a boy liked big trucks, so he bought a 1975 Kenworth and restored it, then did some work on the trailer and now he has this amazing holiday home called Bazza’s Lifestyle and its kitted out with the works including a coffee machine and all the mod cons you can think of. Bazz has just crossed most of the country from Rockhampton to Kunnunnurra and is yet to refuel this sucker.

Bazz wins my vote for the best rig seen on the trip, pity he can’t find a caravan park big enough to let him in, although everything is self contained.